By the Caribbean Journal staff

In a major boost for one of the Dutch Caribbean’s hotspots, United Airlines has announced plans to launch new nonstop service to the island of Curaçao.

Curaçao will become United’s 21st destination in the Caribbean, with flights from Newark Liberty International Airport set to launch on Dec. 7.

In a statement, United said it would be operating the flights weekly on Saturdays using Boeing 737-700 aircraft.

Curacao has few luxury hotels — but the Baoase Luxury Resort, above, is one of the Caribbean’s best.

“United’s global network is a tremendous source of pride for our employees and loyal customers – we’re always looking for ways to grow and expand our network to connect our customers to more destinations around the world,” said United’s International Network Vice President Patrick Quayle. “These new additions help position United as the airline of choice for customers planning their business or leisure travel.”

The Old Quarry golfcourse at Curacao’s Santa Barbara resort.

While United has not been expanding its Caribbean network quite as quickly as competitors like JetBlue and Delta, the carrier has been quietly growing its Caribbean portfolio, most notably with recently expanded service to St Kitts.

Willemstad, Curaçao, the destination’s charming capital.

The new service to Curacao boosts United’s existing service to the Dutch Caribbean, which had consisted of weekly Saturday flights from Houston to Bonaire and daily nonstop flights from Newark to Aruba.

Curacao has seen strong growth so far in 2019, thanks largely to growth in new airlift at the island’s excellent (and newly transformed) Hato International Airport.

— CJ

The post United Airlines Is Launching Nonstop Flights to Curaçao appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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By Alexander Britell

Barbados continues to be one of the hottest tourism destinations in the Caribbean.

The island has seen a 5.2 percent year-over-year jump in stayover visitor arrivals in the first seven months of 2019, according to new data from Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc, the country’s destination marketing organization.

That included a total of 434,961 visitors passing through Barbados’ Grantley Adams International Airport, or a total jump of 21,345 additional visitors in the period, and cementing Barbados’ status as one of the fastest-growing destinations in the region.

On the beach in the south coast of Barbados.

In July alone, Barbados saw an 8 percent increase in visitors compared to the same month in 2018, thanks to what seems to have been a booming Crop Over festival.

“This news augurs well for the future development of Barbados’ tourism industry,” said William Griffith, chief executive officer of Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc. “To continuously record year-on-year growth as a mature destination means that we are moving in the right direction. We must continue to look for new opportunities to reinvent ourselves and remain relevant in this competitive market, while building the resilience of the sector.”

The growth came in part thanks to a concerted push by tourism officials on the island to grow airlift, Griffith said.

The Barbados Food and Rum festival is back for its 10th edition in October.

“One of the pivotal elements of guaranteeing the viability of our tourism industry is ensuring that the island remains easily accessible by land and sea,” he said. “The BTMI has worked closely with our airline partners to maintain, and even boost airlift and this has contributed in part to our favorable increases in arrivals.”

That includes newly-launched service from Jamaica to Barbados, along with an expansion by JetBlue of its weekly Saturday service to year-round service from Newark to Barbados.

On Oct. 28, German carrier Lufthansa will launch thrice-weekly nonstop flights from Frankfurt, a major boost for the European source market to Barbados.

The destination has also seen a boost in new entertainment and other attractions, fro the new Festive Fridays experience in Bridgetown to the launch fo the new St Nicholas Abbey Heritage Railway.

The newly-launched Abidah by Accra all-inclusive.

Barbados also recently welcomed the debut of the new The Abidah by Accra all-inclusive resort, a 44-room luxury adults-only property that opened its doors in June.

And the fall will see two significant events: the 10th Barbados Food and Rum Festival from Oct. 24-27, and the November hosting of the Barbados Mindful Living Festival Nov. 22-24.

“We are pressing full steam ahead with our deployments and activations in the market as we seek to drive more business to Barbados,” Griffith said.  “Destination Barbados will be wrapping up 2019 with a burst of energy.”

— CJ

The post Barbados Is One of the Caribbean’s Hottest Destinations appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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By the Caribbean Journal staff

Sunwing is returning to Tobago for the upcoming winter season, according to a statement from the Canadian travel company.

The move comes after what Sunwing called an “immensely successful” inaugural season in the 2018-2019 peak winter season.

Sunwing, which will be running flights from Toronto to Tobago from Dec. 19 through April 16, 2020, will remain the only Canadian leisure carrier operating flights to Tobago.

“The return of Sunwing’s winter service to Tobago is great news for tourism in Tobago,” said Louis Lewis, CEO for the Tobago Tourism Agency. “This follows a very strong performance for the inaugural season in 2018/19 where our overall arrivals increased by 10%. We welcome the service and look forward to building a strong partnership with the airline to support growing arrivals from the Canadian market.”

Sunwing’s Caribbean portfolio includes the new Starfish Tobago Resort, which opened last year.

“We are excited to be returning to the island of Tobago for a second season and offering residents of the Greater Toronto Area with even more ways to Vacation Better. We’re certain that the island’s lush landscapes, untouched beaches and tropical rainforests will continue to be a big draw for our customers this coming season.”

— CJ

The post Sunwing Is Returning to Tobago appeared first on Caribbean Journal.

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